TOWONG Shire is disappointed the statewide report into rate capping doesn’t acknowledge the slim resources available to rural councils.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Mayor David Wortmann said the Essential Services Commission report did not address many of the points raised in the shire’s submission.
"I really think they've missed the capacity of smaller rural councils," he said.
"To prepare all the extra reporting, it's the same whether metro or rural, it takes up time and use of our staff.
"We've only got a very small council, one of the smallest staffs in Victoria, and everything that gets added, someone's got to do it and you've still got to continue on your day to day tasks."
In its submission to the commission Towong Shire discussed the consumer price index (CPI), which the commission recommended be used in calculating the rates cap.
“Whilst CPI is a simple measure to understand and apply, it is not a relevant driver of the costs local government face,” the submission said, noting instead wages and construction costs.
“Local government is not a household and therefore does not purchase the same basket of goods and services.”
Cr Wortmann said maintaining existing assets remained a challenge for smaller councils.
"We made it very clear in our submission the problems that small rurals have got,” he said.
“Our infrastructure renewal gap is increasing and that's not even considered in the rate cap," he said. "If there's one thing to learn from rate capping in NSW it’s there's a huge deficit on the renewal side of infrastructure, in roads and that, and we don't want Victoria to go down that same path."
Responses to the draft report are due by August 28.
